It is important that only top quality, highly digestible, raw materials are used in the manufacture of prepared foods. frozen, manufactured, and live foods of suitable size. Many successful breeders swear by beef heart, although the flesh of warm-blooded animals is fundamentally bad for fishes and difficult to digest properly.Дiscus are by no means trophic specialists, but will eat any kind of ornamental fish food, i.e. There are manufactured deep-frozen foods and special granulates for discus. The correct feeding of discus is one of those subjects where 10 experts have 20 different opinions, and has been the subject of heated debate for decades.

Obviously the interval between water changes will depend on the aquarium size and the population density, and in the case of large, sparsely populated aquaria can be stretched out to every 2-3 weeks, while in heavily populated tanks water changes should be performed every 2-4 days. To reinforce the immune response of the fishes the aquarium should always contain secondary plant material (primarily humic acids), provided by peat, Alder cones, or beech leaves, or special liquid preparations that are added at every water change.ДЄs a rough rule of thumb the correct amount for partial water changes is 20-25% of tank volume weekly. Soft acid water limits the development of potentially harmful bacteria anyone who decides to use this type of water for discus should always have a supply available for the essential partial water changes. The partial water changes should be made with conditioned fresh water the temperature difference between the new water and the aquarium water should be no more than 2-4 вЊ and the new water should always be cooler, never warmer than the aquarium water. The filtration should be both mechanical and biological. The necessary hygiene can be achieved using a large volume filter and regular large partial water changes. The water temperature should not rise above 30вЊ, and 34 вЊ is often fatal. While soft acid water is not essential for successful maintenance, an adequately high water temperature (at least 28 вЊ) and extremely high standards of hygiene are essential.

The delicacy of discus in the aquarium is primarily due to their poor resistance to pathogens of all types.

The natural habitat of discus is characterised by three features: the water is relatively warm (29-34вЊ) it is at least 1.5 metres deep and the water is soft (no measurable hardness) and acid (pH 4-5). Although discus are regarded as tricky aquarium fishes, whose successful maintenance and breeding requires a good knowledge of fish keeping, there are numerous fish farms in South-East Asia that specialise in discus and are able to breed any quantity required for the world market. In addition there are numerous cultivated forms of discus that can no longer be assigned to any of the wild species. Blue and Brown Discus are no more than separate colour variants that occur together in the wild and mate with one another. aequifasciatus), and the Blue and Brown Discus (S. They belong to the genus Symphysodon, which essentially contains three species: the Heckel Discus (S. Discus are among the most beautiful and most commonly kept species of cichlids.

Discus fish types